Coast wants to keep CR alive

Fort Bragg Town Hall was filled to overflowing by residents of the Mendocino Coast and southern Humboldt County at a special meeting of the board of trustees of the Redwoods Community College District on Monday, Feb. 17. The voices from the sign-bearing crowd outside and the supportive honking of horns by drivers passing by made hearing speakers difficult for audience members.

Trustees heard input regarding President Kathy Smith's recommendations to suspend all operations at the Fort Bragg and Garberville campuses of College of the Redwoods effective in the fall.

No action was taken at the meeting. Smith's recommendations will likely be voted on at the trustees' March 4 meeting in Eureka.

Sheriff Tom Allman was on hand to ensure impassioned opinions did not translate into disorderly conduct. However, with two exceptions, all of the 38 speakers stayed under the three-minute time limit and respected the process for other speakers.

More than three dozen speakers addressed the trustees in the two-hour hearing. Members of the public who spoke included Dave Turner, mayor of Fort Bragg, Dan Hamburg, fifth district supervisor, and Fort Bragg Unified School District Superintendent Dr. Don Armstrong. Former or current CR faculty who spoke included Tanya Smart, Theresa Sholars and Richard Ries, one of the three full-time faculty who have been told they would be transferred elsewhere in the district.

Three of the four remaining full-time faculty were notified by Smith in a Jan. 17 telephone call that they are being transferred to other sites in the district. The Fine Wood Working program will remain intact. Smith's actions touched off an emotional firestorm around the campus and on the coast.

Monday, Mayor Turner addressed the issue of continuing classes until a transfer of jurisdiction with Mendocino Community College District could be fulfilled.

"CR needs to set its fiscal ship straight," Turner said. "You have $1.5 million in cuts to make. So go ahead, start with the Mendocino Coast. Cut your losses. Suspend operations, but not until you have in place an agreement with Mendocino College to provide classes this fall. CR must provide classes at Mendocino. You cannot just put us on the shelf to be considered another day. Our students cannot suspend their lives."

Brian Renzi, a U.S. Army veteran, a member of Veterans of Foreign Wars and alumnus of CR, received a standing ovation when he addressed the particular needs of returning veterans during reintegration into civilian society.

"Faculty currently employed at CRMC have inspired me to become a member of Phi Theta Kappa, and continue my education to get a bachelor's degree," he said. "I need you to understand that reintegration for veterans is very difficult. If it were not for the existence of College of the Redwoods, here, and the meritorious teaching staff and counselor, my reintegration would not have been possible. Their quality and affection as human beings has made all the difference.

"The education opportunities that I have found here have been tremendously beneficial to me and that means they can be just as beneficial to all returning veterans and to all citizens of the United States of America. Trust me when I say this community needs you," Renzi said.

Heidi Dickerson, field representative for Congressman Jared Huffman in Fort Bragg, read a statement from him..

"I want the community to know I am with them," he wrote. "Having a community college campus in Fort Bragg is a high priority. From the comments that have been shared with my office, I have heard compelling arguments from supporters of this college campus.

"As a member of the Congressional Community College Caucus, I am well aware of the challenges faced by the College of the Redwoods. I urge you to continue to work with the residents of coastal Mendocino County to come to a mutually beneficial resolution."

Sue Gibson, a Mendocino resident and former regional coordinator for The Partnership Scholars Program, spoke to the need for an operational community college in Fort Bragg for high school students. The program's mission is to provide six years of educational and cultural experiences to academically motivated but economically disadvantaged students, starting in the seventh grade.

"Without our college, our kids cannot compete for scholarships," Gibson said. "In order to compete for scholarships, you need advanced placement-level classes. Our kids were able to compete because of you. Our high schools cannot give all the required AP classes. You did."

Gibson discussed the money involved that went beyond the spreadsheets offered by the CR administration. She said in the last year she worked for The Partnership Scholars Program, six students earned $1.2 million in scholarships. "We cannot compete with urban schools without your college," she said.

She finished by telling the trustees that two high school students are now in their second round of interviews for scholarships. She said one is a potential full-ride recipient at Brown University and the other at Dartmouth College.

Sheriff Allman spoke of the need for the community college as a way to reduce crime by repeat offenders. He said that the state had transferred low-level prisoners to county jails and was going to work with counties to reduce recidivism.

"Any sociologist will tell you that increased education is certainly going to decrease criminal activity in any community," he said. "I don't think we're going to reduce criminality with online classes."

Linda Rosengarten, a long-time Mendocino Coast resident, business owner and former FBUSD trustee, summed up many of the speakers' opinions that a holding pattern for the Fort Bragg campus is not an option.

"Let's get on with it. Let's work together for an amicable reorganization," she said. "All of your constituents and your district deserve your advocacy for local access to community college. If you do not want us as part of your district, take the high road and secure us a district that will."

Coast residents who were not able to speak at the public hearing or who want to submit comments prior to the March 4 meeting can email michelle-anderson@redwoods.edu and the feedback will be forwarded.

The archived video of the Feb. 17 trustees meeting can be found at http://mendocinotv.com